How to make children eat fish: 8 easy and good recipes
Getting children to eat fish is not easy, especially if those children prefer foods with delicate and not very decisive tastes. But fish is a food with innumerable nutritional properties and is an excellent source of protein.
Fish is rich in vitamins of group A, B and D and is a source of iodine, mineral salts, fluorine, iron and Omega 3 – therefore it would be good to try them all a little to make it pleasant and make it a regular dish in their feeding (at least 1/2 times a week for small children, 2/3 times for older children).
Fish is usually introduced into the child’s diet starting from 7/8 months, paying attention to the types of fish to be offered month by month.
Pediatricians recommend starting with lean and light fish such as sole, cod, hake, dogfish, preferably steamed or boiled and prepared in such a way as to make them boneless, attractive to children’s eyes and easy to eat.
Over the months you can move on to fish with a tastier taste such as sea bass, sea bream, swordfish, tuna, salmon which can also be prepared with other types of cooking especially if the child has come to eat everything (generally at 12/24 months).
To make the fish pleasant and easy to eat, you can also mash or blend other ingredients such as potatoes, courgettes, carrots, finely chopped parsley, breadcrumbs and even eggs. Tender meatballs, appetizing hamburgers and delicious breaded fish sticks can be prepared in this way.
Easy and good recipes to get children to eat fish
If you are not superfine cooks and need ideas in the kitchen, I have found for you 8 recipes based on fish that are easy to prepare and good to eat. Some are for small children in the weaning phase, others for slightly older children. Keep them in mind because you’ll need them all anyway
Pasta with fish
For children who love soups, here is the recipe for preparing a good and appetizing fish-based broth (cod or hake) with small pasta . The recipe calls for the use of flavoring ingredients such as tomato, parsley, basil.
Plaice cream
Here is a recipe with a more delicate flavor and ideal for introducing fish during weaning. It is a cream of steamed plaice with the addition of potatoes, courgettes and carrots. Good and velvety.
Salmon risotto for children
For children who have already got used to the taste of fish and who like strong flavours, here’s how to prepare a good salmon risotto . The rice will dampen the strong flavor of the salmon which, rich in noble and beneficial fats but steamed, will be an excellent food to be served even once a week.Plaice fillets with zucchini cream
Plaice is extremely easy to cook and palatable. Following this recipe you can prepare tender plaice fillets flavored and made soft with a delicate zucchini cream.
Pizza mackerel
If you need to “hide” the fish in a good tomato sauce, this is the right recipe! It involves preparing mackerel fillets (or other favorite fish) with tomato sauce and capers and cooking in a covered pot.
Fish balls
The meatballs being soft and easy to eat even with the hands, are always appreciated by children even if these are fish. A good way to make them is to mix the fish (in this case hake or sole) with the boiled potatoes and a little parsley. After flouring them, have fun giving them the shapes you want.
Fish Hamburger
Here is a delicious and certainly successful recipe for preparing a second course of fish appreciated by all adults and children: the fish burger . All you need is a mixer, some fish of your choice (cod, hake, dogfish are fine…) a sprig of rosemary, a little breadcrumbs and cook in the oven or in a pan with a drizzle of oil.
Fish sticks
Finally, to get children to eat fish, could I not end up with fish sticks that children like so much? Here is an excellent recipe for preparing healthy sticks of good fresh fish at home without going to buy ready-made ones.
And if you need other recipes for your children, I also recommend these readings:
Kathryn Barlow is an OB/GYN doctor, which is the medical specialty that deals with the care of women's reproductive health, including pregnancy and childbirth.
Obstetricians provide care to women during pregnancy, labor, and delivery, while gynecologists focus on the health of the female reproductive system, including the ovaries, uterus, vagina, and breasts. OB/GYN doctors are trained to provide medical and surgical care for a wide range of conditions related to women's reproductive health.